During hydraulic fracturing operations utilized in production of hydrocarbons, a proppant, such as sand, is blended in a blending unit with one or more liquids, such as water, to form a hydraulic fracturing fluid. Prior to introduction into the blending unit, the liquids themselves may be mixed together in a hydration unit. In both hydration and blending, air bubbles may become entrained in the fluid as a result of the process. In any event, the hydraulic fracturing fluid is then introduced into a wellbore under high pressure in order to promote production of hydrocarbons from a formation. To achieve the fluid pressures necessary for such an operation, high pressure pumps are utilized to pump the hydraulic fracturing fluid into the formation. These high-pressure pumps include internal components such as pistons or impellers designed to withstand proppant entrained in the hydraulic fracturing fluid. In particular, these internal pump components are designed to withstand the impact of proppant on the internal components. For this reason, heretofore, it was believed that the pistons, impellers and the like would similarly withstand the impact of entrained gas, such as air bubbles, on the internal components. However, it has been found that unlike the proppant entrained in the hydraulic fracturing fluid, gas bubbles are significantly more harmful to these internal pump components, causing cavitation that erodes the components, which can decrease pump performance, increase pump maintenance and shorten the operational life of the components.